The last major interview George Perez accepted was for SyFy (sample) and for Teen Titans: The Judas Contract (I think Warner Brothers flew him to Burbank to film Marv & George talking about their creations).

Please stop asking me or requesting George
Perez for an interview. The best way to get a hold of George for any
questions will be at a convention.

Some example of interview requests (from 2017 only):

A: Hi George, I am starting up a new comic book podcast called xxxxxxxx
with a couple buddies. I was wondering if you would be interested in
coming on to our show for an interview and talk about your career
working on comics in the near future?

B: I am a comics enthusiast and am also looking at breaking into the
field. I have started blogging stories about artists and comic creators
called xxxxxxxx. How do you schedule an interview with George Perez? Is
there a fee or donation for getting the interview? and Does he have an
agent we contact?

C: I would like to have George Pérez on my podcast as a special guest to
talk about Hulk: Future Imperfect. Do you know if he does podcast
xxxxxxx interviews? Do you know how I can reach him?

D: I am Senior Editor of xxxxxxx. I also have entries in the upcoming
xxxxxxx which will be published this fall. I’m now writing a book on
literature’s influence in comics and I wanted to know if I could
interview you for the book. xxxxx is interested in publishing my book.
Attached and pasted below are the questions for your perusal.

E: If you found you had some free time, I know my editor would love it if I could press you for an interview for xxxxxx

F: Hello, my name is xxxxxx, the host/producer of xxxx podcast, a show
that interviews influential people in the world of comics. Guests share
their creative journey, expressing what excites them today, their worst
moments and most memorable successes.... I would be honored if George
Perez will join me on the show for an interview. Past guests include
[names redacted]. George is a master cartoonist whose work has inspired
and influenced countless people around the world. I know that his
journey and experience will give my listeners the spark they need to
keep their passion for making comics burning. I understand the life of a
cartoonist is hectic but I hope that George will set aside 1 hour to
sit down with me for a chat via Skype/Phone call.

Did
you buy Teen Titans: The Judas Contract and wish you could watch it on
iTunes? Now you can with Movies Anywhere. All the titles (at least for
the participating movie studios) you own on UltraViolet will now appear
on iTunes, once you connect all your accounts. As an incentive, you will
also receive five free digital films.

As a DVD, and now Blu-Ray, collector, I’ve been following the movie
studio’s Digital Copy since its introduction as either iTunes or Windows
files, via a bonus Digital Disc on retail DVD releases. The Digital
Files required the user to unlock the disc and the copy-protected file
can only be played with certain video software.

The Digital Disc was eventually replaced with a simple iTunes code,
which you can redeem (and if you want, you can download the digital copy
on your harddrive or iOS device).

When UltraViolet came out in 2012, I wasn’t quite happy with it, but it was a start. Now most new titles will come with an UV video code, but no Apple iTunes codes.

In 2014, Disney introduced their Disney Anywhere program. With
just one code, you can view your movies on anywhere Disney is available:
Google Play, Amazon, iTunes, Vudu, etc. This was such a great idea,
that on October 12, 2017, they’ve added other studios (Sony Pictures,
Twentieth Century Fox, Universal, and Warner Bros.) and changed
their name to Movies Anywhere.

Once you connect your iTunes, Disney, Google, and Amazon’s account, you
will start seeing the films you own everywhere! Plus, as an incentive,
Movie Anywhere will give you five digital film.

My Google’s purchased library have grown exponentially, from 3 films to
over 500 titles. If you spend a lot of time using your YouTube app,
you’ll appreciate seeing your purchased films in your account. Same if
you only have an Apple TV, you’ll see all your UV titles now. The best
part is that some iTunes titles have exclusive bonus iTunes Exclusives
(special features), that aren’t available on other platforms.

Tip: If you want to grow your iTunes library on the cheap, you can do the Vudu to Go
conversation with 10 Blu-Ray Discs for $10 ($1 per film). Once you
have the HD Digital Copy in your account, the new 4K Apple TV will
upgrade your titles to 4K for free.

Over at cbr.com,
they asked "Was Starfire Originally Going to be Black?" because of the
recent casting of actress Anna Diop as Starfire. The person asking the
question was convinced that Starfire was originally black.

The quick answer is: NO.
Starfire is an alien, but the character that was originally black was Raven.

Marv Wolfman: In my original
notes on Raven, I wrote, "She should be black." But then I went, I
don't like that concept, I don't like characters being called by their
racial names, because you don't see... You never see white Superman, as a
name.

Warner Bros announced that they are releasing the DC Universe Original Movies: 10th Anniversary Collection on a 30 disc Blu-Ray collection on November 7th. The collection will feature two George Perez-related films, TEEN TITANS: THE JUDAS CONTRACT (18 Apr 2017) and WONDER WOMAN: COMMEMORATIVE EDITION (02 May 2017).
Pricing has not been announced, but they shouldn't sell this for more
than $100. I actually own 95% of these titles, except for one or two
titles and the forthcoming Batman & Harley Quinn.

Teen Titans classic comes to DVD
Story line from 1980s gets an update.
Star Tribune 2 May 2017 By DAVID BETANCOURT • Washington Post

“Teen Titans.”

So much time has been spent analyzing Warner Bros. and DC
Entertainment’s recent attempts to make live-action movies with their
iconic library of superheroes that it can be easy to forget the
connected, straight-to-DVD, animated universe they have built over the
years.

It should come as no surprise that this multi-movie animated world is
put together well and full of intriguing, entertaining story lines:
Warner Bros. animation is involved. From the groundbreaking “Batman: The
Animated Series” of the early 1990s to the hilarious “Teen Titans Go!”
now on Cartoon Network, DC Comics has always been at its best creatively
in the ’toon department.

WB/DC’s latest movie “Teen Titans: The Judas Contract” (available
Tuesday digitally and on Blu-ray) stands out as their best animated
effort yet.

“The Judas Contract,” a Teen Titans story line from the ’80s from the
legendary creative duo of writer Marv Wolfman and artist George Perez,
is an all-time great DC Comics story, right up there with “Watchmen,”
“Kingdom Come” and “The New Frontier.”

Adapting the ’80s classic into a modernday tale meant making some
tweaks. The Titans roster in “The Judas Contract” has been updated, with
Damian Wayne serving as Robin the Boy Wonder. While the characters in
the movie don’t completely mimic the original story line, enough key
ingredients are there to make the movie work well.

Here is the transcript to Villains Rising: Deathstroke Special Feature.

>>>

MARV WOLFMAN: Slade is a character with very strong moral beliefs. I
never thought of him as a villain. I never thought of him as the guy
who was going to destroy the Titans. He definitely is a mercenary who
has his own ethics. And then suddenly he finds himself
in a situation, because of his son, that keeps making things worse and
worse and worse. And it took something like his son being killed for
him to start going against his own professional ethics by going after
the Titans for a more personal vendetta. And we watch this character,
step by step, falling deeper and deeper into the abyss. And that's the
story, to me, of Deathstroke. A man of honor who finds himself unable to
get out of a situation he should never have been in the first place.

WOLFMAN: Slade is totally a victim of circumstance.

MIKE CARLIN: Deathstroke, to me, has always seemed like a very honorable
villain, and I think that the army instills
a lot of that stuff in their soldiers. But in particular, meeting his
first wife in the army and having her be involved in his training and
her be involved in his enhancements, pretty much set him on the path to
be Deathstroke.

GEORGE PEREZ: He was a soldier. He was a man who acted on duty. Even as
an assassin, he followed a contract. He believed in doing his job. I
mean, he was like a negative version of Captain America. Captain America
was the super soldier. So was Deathstroke a super soldier. Captain
America decided to be a patriot, Deathstroke decided to be an assassin.
He wouldn't have been hired to go after the Titans if he wasn't the
best that he could be. He was somebody who cared very much about doing
the right thing but honoring his word as a soldier. He was a big
believer in "Your word is your bond," and that, to me,
is what Deathstroke's all about. His word is his bond.

CARLIN: Part of what the Titans are about is they created their own
family. They found people that they could be with, who were not
necessarily their genetic
relatives but who were kindred spirits, and Deathstroke has literally a
DNA-connected family that kind of define and put him on his path.
Between Grant and then Jericho and even then later, Rose Wilson, they
are a big motivation in his backstory for what he does and why he does
it and why he's relentless, because he sees them as legacies that he
wants to actually perpetuate. When a group called the H.I.V.E.
approached him to kill the Titans, he turned them down.

Slade said, "Look, my son can do it and if there's any problem, I will
protect him." And instead, his son gets killed. So Slade, to honor his
family, to honor his word, that he would always have his son's back, he
had to take on a job he didn't want because this isn't his fight, but
he's made it his fight. That's why I don't see him as a villain,
I actually see him as a victim who simply does not know how to get out,
to make it right, and so he sinks into this pattern
of trying to kill the Titans but
he doesn't really want to but he has to. I think Marv, from the very
moment
he conceived the Teen Titans,
knew that he did not want this
to be a juvenile book.
So he wanted to do themes that were
sometimes a little harsher, more sobering, without pandering.
Deathstroke was created to be older.
I didn't like the idea that all villains
were also about the same age as the heroes or, you know, equivalent
adults. We gave him the white hair.
I wanted something very different
because that would give a different type
of credibility to the villain, and also say that he's had many years
to do what he's done. It explains why he's good. I think the fact that
there was a romance, or certainly a use of each other, absolutely set up
who these characters were
and in ways that we hadn't seen before and as far as I know,
may not have seen since.
But it so defines the characters
in so many ways. She's a psychopath, she's crazy. He's not crazy, but
he's finding himself
being drawn in by her.

I'm assuming a lot of readers did not
get it because they were too young. I do believe that you don't see things
you don't understand. And I'm sure the more adult things
in the Titans did not get noticed by the kids.
It's always been my belief that you have
to take these outrageous-type characters, bigger-than-life characters,
and make them feel real because you're going to be
asking the reader to accept so many incredible things
that they can do. If they don't feel these characters
are actually real to some degree,
they're not going to care about these
larger-than-life events. Slade has got to constantly remind
himself that he's a person. He has to constantly remind himself
what is right and what is wrong
and, of course, that just destroys him
when he realizes
he's now out to destroy the Titans,
people who he doesn't even care about, and that goes against every real
emotion that he has. The more real the emotions,
the more real the readers will believe
these characters to be.

PEREZ: One of the things about
Deathstroke, and I think any good villain, is that they themselves
don't think of themselves as villains.
They justify what they do.
They have their own code. In his case, he was doing his job,
and Deathstroke always justified
what he did.

To him, he's a good guy who found himself being challenged because he said, "Yes"
when he should've said, "No." He is the hero but he also knows
that he's failing. And that's why he gets
more and more desperate, and that challenges his
"I am the hero of my own story," because he no longer is.

CARLIN: The thing that I note
about the characters that last a long time
is that they are flexible.
And they are flexible in terms
of their character.
They're flexible in terms of
how they can fit into a story.

You know, Batman,
he's been done comedically,
he's been done grim and gritty
and everything in between,
and he endures because he's a flexible
character in that respect.
And I think Deathstroke as a villain
is the same.

PEREZ: A character that I didn't expect
to be much more than a few issues and that was it,
has now found life
three and a half decades later
as one of the major villains of DC Comics.
I never would have expected that. So I'm just grateful that at the time
in the 1980s when we did the Titans,
when we did The Judas Contract
and all those stories with the character,
that it left enough of an impact
to keep it alive.

Arthur Conan Doyle probably never expected
that Sherlock Holmes
would still be having movies being
made of him to this very day,
with modern twists and changes as well,
but keeping the essence
of Sherlock Holmes.
And I think we've been
lucky enough to get that
with Deathstroke
and the rest of the Titans.

Compared to rigidly faithful adaptations like The Dark Knight
Returns, The Judas Contract is a pretty loose take on the source
material. That's probably for the best, honestly. That storyline came in
the middle of a lengthy run by creators Marv Wolfman and George Perez
and built on a great deal of continuity that simply isn't in place in
this particular animated universe. The problem with this adaptation,
though, is that it still attempts to cover too much ground. The
80-minute run-time simply isn't enough to do justice to the various plot
threads or flesh out the main characters to the degree they deserve.
Brother Blood comes across as your textbook supervillain in search of
absolute power. Much of the drama involving Blue Beetle's homesickness
and the Nightwing/Starfire romance feels tacked-on and poorly developed.
Very little is done with the always enjoyable Dick Grayson/Damian Wayne
dynamic.

World Premiere of Teen Titans: The Judas Contract at WCA 2017!Posted on Mar 13, 2017

Warner Bros. Home Entertainment continues its annual WonderCon tradition with the premiere of Teen Titans: The Judas Contract, the next DC Universe Original Movie, on the evening of Friday, March 31, 2017 in the Arena of the Anaheim Convention Center.

Inspired by the 1984 DC story arc from Marv Wolfman and George Pérez, Teen Titans: The Judas Contract finds
the Teen Titans—Starfire, Beast Boy, Raven, Blue Beetle, Robin and the
just-returned Nightwing—working as a cohesive team in their never-ending
battle against evil. But their newest teammate, the mysterious and
powerful Terra (voiced by Christina Ricci), may be altering that
dynamic. Meanwhile, an ancient evil, Brother Blood (Gregg Henry), has
awakened, and familiar foe Deathstroke (the late Miguel Ferrer) is
lurking in the shadows – both waiting to pounce. Ultimately, the Teen
Titans will need to battle their enemies and their own doubts to unite
and overcome the malicious forces around them in this twisting tale of
intrigue, adventure and deception.

An encore presentation of Teen Titans: The Judas Contract (without an accompanying panel) is slated for Sunday, April 2 at 3:15 PM in the Arena.

Warner Bros. Animation and DC Entertainment just released the details for the Teen Titans: The Judas Contract Blu-ray.
The release date is officially April 18th, 2017. As earlier noted, one
of the special features will spotlight Marv Wolfman and George Perez in
"Titanic Minds: Wolfman and Perez", which explores their creative
partnership.

Warner
Bros. Animation and DC Entertainment bring one of the most momentous
Teen Titans plotlines in comics history to animated life with the
all-new, feature-length film Teen Titans: The Judas Contract. Inspired by the 1984 DC story arc from Marv Wolfman and George Pérez, Teen Titans: The Judas Contract
will be distributed by Warner Bros. Home Entertainment on April 18,
2017. Check out new box photos and animation stills in the gallery
below!

(excerpt)

· Featurette – Titanic Minds: Wolfman and Perez: This
revealing documentary explores a creative partnership that has lasted
decades as Marv Wolfman and George Pérez come together to discuss their
careers and one of the most famous runs in Teen Titan history, The Judas
Contract.

Here is the high
resolution cover artwork to the Bluray/DVD of Teen Titans: The Judas
Contract cover artwork. Although there is no release date listed, I
believe the animation will be available in March 2017.

The movie, being directed by Sam Liu (Justice League vs. Teen Titans) from a screenplay by Ernie Altbacker, adapts the classic storyline from Tales of the Teen Titans,
one of DC's top comics in the 1980s. Ricci will play Teen Titans member
Terra and Ferrer is voicing the mercenary villain Deathstroke.

Ricci and Ferrer are newcomers to the stable of the DC animated movies, a line that celebrates its 10th anniversary this year. Titans
will also see returning DC players Sean Maher, Kari Wahlgren, Jake T.
Austin, Taissa Farmiga, Brandon Soo Hoo and Stuart Allan join the voice
cast.

Funnyman Stephen Colbert is cashing in* on the holiday spirit by
releasing a DVD and digital EP of his A Colbert Christmas: The Greatest
Gift Of All (both released on November 25, 2008 via Comedy Central).
…

This
is a bonus year-end episode. The Vu and John segments did not fit in
with our Deaths of 2016 and Comic Book Movies of 2016.... With that
said, we mostly talked about comic books and movie collecting:

Black Friday extended to Black Week?

Logan movie trailer looks fantastic.

New Teen Titans: The Judas Contract direct-to-video film. Based on Marv Wolfman and George Perez’s classic storyline.

Last week George Pérez and I met in Burbank to talk about the making of
The New Titans' "Judas Contract" four part story. They filmed us for
nearly 5 hours talking about how we put it together and what it meant to
us. After our conversation, George did a solo interview while I head
over to DC and then back home. Yesterday, I returned to Burbank for my
solo interview, talking not only about the Judas Contract, but also
Terra as well as a separate interview about Deathstroke. I'm not sure
where all of this is going to appear, but most of it will be on the
DVD/Blu Ray for the Judas Contract animated movie which I think comes
out sometime this summer.

Please note I haven't seen the movie or
know anything about it (so don't bother fishing for info) but George and
I were certainly capable of talking about the making of the original
comic. Hope you like it when you see it. By the way, George and I will
coincidentally be at several cons together this coming year. The first
of which is in Los Angeles the beginning of January, but we have many
others, too. I'll announce all cons before they happen.

This
past Wednesday I drove down to Studio City in LA and got together with
pal/co-creator/brilliant artist and all around great guy, George Pérez,
to discuss the making of our "The Judas Contract" comic stories. Our
conversation was filmed and yes, you can be a fly on the wall and see
it, I believe, as an extra on the upcoming animated film's Blu-Ray/DVD,
although it might pop up in other places, too.

It’s long been discussed, but it’s now officially confirmed. TEEN TITANS: THE JUDAS CONTRACT,
the popular New Teen Titans storyline by Marv Wolfman and George Perez,
will be adapted into a feature length animated film in 2017.

Revealed during tonight’s packed Batman: The Killing Joke World Premiere panel, Teen Titans: The Judas Contract was announced alongside two other intriguing-sounding DC Universe Original Movies slotted for next year.

First out of the gate will be Justice League Dark, an adaptation of the popular comic book series
that will bring John Constantine to the world of animation for the
first time in a supernatural story that promises plenty of mystery and
thrills, along with an amazing voice cast. While Constantine’s world of
demons and magic are an important part of the DC Universe, it’s been
largely unexplored in DC’s connected universe of animated movies until
now.

Teen Titans: The Judas Contract will follow in the spring and will serve as something of a follow-up to last year’s Justice League vs. Teen Titans. “The
Judas Contract” debuted in 1984 in the pages of New Teen Titans, when
the Titans’ comic book popularity was at its height. Written by Wolfman
and drawn by Perez, it introduced the perhaps not-to-be-trusted Terra to
the Teen Titans and was the storyline in which Dick Grayson first
adopted the identity of Nightwing. “The Judas Contract” was one of the
most popular comic book storylines of its year and is continually ranked
among the greatest Teen Titans stories ever told.

Finally, the 2017 lineup of DC Universe Original Movies concludes with Batman and Harley Quinn,
a brand new, wholly original story from DC animation legend Bruce Timm.
The storyline for this one is tightly under wraps, but considering
Timm’s beloved style and complete understanding of both these classic
characters, fans can expect this movie to be the talk of next summer.

So
what do you think, Titans fans? Are you excited to finally see “The
Judas Contract” brought to animation? Which of these three films are you
most intrigued by? Sound off in the comments below, and be sure to keep
your eye here on DCComics.com all weekend long for DC news as it
breaks.

Making Sense of DC's Film Projects (or trying to)

A common complaint, fair or not, among comic book fans is that DC Comics are more confusing than Marvel Comics.

TEEN TITANS: THE JUDAS CONTRACT DVD(2010)

Without indulging that argument, it’s undeniable that at the moment the upcoming slate of Marvel Studios films is much, much less complicated than Warner Bros. films based on the “distinguished competition” currently in development. Since May and Iron Man’s nearly-$100 million opening weekend, Marvel Studio’s schedule has been nice and tidy - Iron Man 2 and Thor in 2010, Captain America and Avengers in 2011, with films like Runaways andAnt-Man also in the mix.

(excerpt)

Teen Titans

Okay, if Warner Bros. has decided to build a Justice League movie from solo movies on up, what does this mean for the Teen Titans movie, announced in May of 2007?

Akiva Goldsman and Kerry Foster were attached as producers through their Weed Road banner, and Mark Verheiden was attached to write the script. As recently as April of this year, Verheiden spoke about the project in the present tense, in fact, describing it as "back on". The writer revealed he had turned in a draft to Warner Bros., which would feature Nightwing and Robin, would be very faithful to the Marv Wolfman/George Perez iconic run of the comic book, and described Warner Bros. as "absolutely committed" to doing the movie.

Though he has received top accolades for his dramatic work, Goldsman is no stranger to the world of comic books and masked avengers. He wrote 1995�s Batman Forever and the 1997 follow-up Batman and Robin, and is currently producing Warner Bros.� Will Smith superhero pic Tonight He Comes. His Weed Road is also developing films based on the DC Comc properties Doom Patrol and The Losers.

In addition to writing and producing episodes of the Superman-themed Smallville television series, Verheiden has written installments of the Superman, Aliens and The Phantom comic books, and co-created Dark Horse Comics� Timecop with Mike Richardson.

For anyone disappointed that Robin has been left out of the recent Batman films (I hope you are few), there is good news: Warner Bros. is developing a movie version of the DC comic Teen Titans. Robin is one of the original members of the young super team, and though he has not always been part of the group, it is certainly a possibility that he'll make it into the movie -- if only because of his familiarity to mainstream audiences. The Hollywood Reporter does report that Nightwing, a character who is sort of like an alternative version of Robin (he is the older incarnation of the original Robin, Dick Grayson), is already a definite character. However, because the continuities of DC Comics confuse the dickens out of me, I really have no idea if Nightwing and (the more-recognizable) Robin could both be a part of the movie's team.

NRAMA: Are you still working on the Teen Titans: The Judas Contract cartoon?

MW: I just finished it.

(excerpt)

NRAMA: Do you suspect it will be less anime influenced?

MW: I don't believe art designs have been done but what I've always been told was that this was going to be done straight. But I loved the Cartoon Network version of �The Judas Contract�. I thought for a show aimed at eight year olds, they did a story that an adult could watch and not at all be insulted by. We are aiming for a PG-13 audience so hopefully we're going to be able to do all the emotion that they did and more, but also make it closer to the original comic.

NRAMA: Is George Perez involved in any capacity?

MW: He was originally going to be art designer for it but he is so busy that he's not going to be able to. But I believe we're still going to be using his design from the comic as the basis.

There's some good news afoot for Teen Titans fans, but it depends on your point of view. As a fan of the TV cartoon rather than a comics aficionado, I have mixed feelings. On the one hand, I really loved Trouble in Tokyo and would be happy for a who slew of Titans movies in the same vein. It's great entertainment for the whole family. On the other hand, I'm intrigued.

Oh, Toy Box Mommy, you are saying. What in the world are you talking about??

Whoops. Would that be helpful to this discussion? I bet it would. My bad.

BEHIND THE SCENES
Written by Marv Wolfman and Tom DeSanto; executive produced by Sander Schwartz and Gregory Noveck

THE DISH
For everyone who was a fan of the hit Cartoon Network series, this is not for you. For everyone who liked the show but wondered where characters like Kid Flash, Wonder Girl, and others were in the original cartoon, this is more up your alley.

Based on the story written by Marv Wolfman and George perez, Teen Titans villain Destroke the Terminator sends a spychopathic metahuman named Terra to infiltrate the team to gain access to their secret identities so he can capture them.

"I love the original story," explains Wolfman. "This is one of several Titans stories we did early on that deserves to be a movie."

Wolfman admitted to having a fondness for hte original Dethstroke stories, the Terror of Trigon and the Titans story set on Starfire's home world.

Co-writing and Wolfman will be Tom DeSanto, producer on the "X-Men" and upcoming "Transformers" films. Perez will contirbute all-new character designs, and the team will feature the classic lineup of Wonder Girl, Changeling, Cyborg, Raven and Dick Grayson, who will make the transition from Robin to Nightwing.

Since I had been down with the flu for almost two weeks, I spent last week starting to catch up on work. Besides a secret project, I'm back on THE JUDAS CONTRACT, the Titans animated movie script and this week I start working on the script for NIGHTWING #130.

In the meantime, it looks like this version of the Titans will be going on vacation with Murakami. When asked about their future he said there may be some possibilities of more DVD movies, but nothing is certain. He also isn't likely to work on the upcoming Judas Contract DVDheaded by Bruce Timm.

"That's a difficult question to answer," he admits. "I really like what we did with the Titans, I always say that we combined the Bob Haney/Nick Cardy version with the Marv Wolfman/George Perez Titans. I worked so hard to create a different version of the Titans I might not be the right choice to work on the Judas Contract.

"[Besides] I think the fans want a 'faithful' interpretation of the Judas Contract. I think a lot of the die-hard fans felt our series was too Anime or skewed too young. I understand how they feel about the show but we were trying to appeal to a younger audience. I grew up reading the Wolfman and Perez Titans so I understand what they want."

According to coverage here at CBR, DC's launching a slate of projects as DVD animated features, much like "Ultimate Avengers," the first of which will be a "New Frontier" movie based on Darwyn Cooke's 2003-04 story. Future films include an abridged "Death of Superman" story featuring Doomsday and "The Judas Contract," based on the classic Marv Wolfman/George Perez "New Teen Titans" epic storyline. Each of the films will emulate the art style of the comic books they're based on.

[Paul] Levitz discussed DC's direct-to-DVD series of animated films previously announced at Comic-Con International, the first of which will be a "New Frontier" movie based on Darwyn Cooke's 2003 - 04 story. Future films include an abridged "Death of Superman" story featuring Doomsday and "The Judas Contract," based on the classic Marv Wolfman/George Perez "New Teen Titans" epic storyline. Each of the films will emulate the art style of the comic books they're based on.

When asked by a fan if Frank Miller's "Dark Knight Returns" might receive the animated treatment, Levitz said it's possible, but would "depend on Miller's schedule." Miller is currently in pre-production for "Sin City 2," which he will follow up by writing and directing a film based on Will Eisner's "The Spirit."

�The Judas Contract movie will be closer to the original comic than even the show [Teen Titans] was, and the show was very faithful to the spirit of the original,� Wolfman told Newsarama, asked how the movie will be different from DC animation series in the past. �I loved what they did but I'm hoping we can be more adult in the handling of this story.

�Whereas the Titans cartoon show was obviously aimed for kids, this is not being aimed at the youngest kids as it will contain mature content. It will be closer to the original comic but hopefully even stronger as we'll have actors, which means we'll be able to do some more subtle material. In comics you have to make readers read the dialogue as you want them to, but of course that's impossible. Here we can have those little verbal moments where a simple �grunt� or �sigh� or sound can replace paragraphs of prose. Because it's a different medium, we alter the way we tell our stories, playing to this medium's strengths as George and I tried to do with the original, playing to the strength of comics.�

�And yes,� Wolfman added, �Tom [DeSanto] and I intend for the �nightgown and cigarette" scene to be there.�

Teen Titans: Written by Marv Wolfman and Tom DeSanto, with input from George Perez, this film focuses on the '80s version of the Titans. Though the specific storyline was not confirmed, DC used the cover of the Judas Contract (one of the best Titans tales of all time) during the announcement.

"This is just the beginning," Levitz assured. In fact, DC want to hear from the fans as to what stories they'd like to see. Levitz stressed that the series was for the fans and would retain the core essence and look of the original tales. The audience shouted a number of possible stories. One, however, earned a promising response from Levitz. "The Dark Knight [Returns], we have talked about."

The voice talent has not been finalized for these films. DC is not yet certain if the same actors will carry over in the same roles from one film to the next.

As DC Publisher and President Paul Levitz announced at Saturday's DC: One Year Greater panel, DC and Warner Bros. Animation and Warner Home Video are looking to enter the direct to video marketplace in a big way, with three upcoming animated movies: New Teen Titans: The Judas Contract, Superman/Doomsday, and The New Frontier.

Bruce Timm will oversee the projects, and each will be faithful adaptations of the original stories, carrying over the stories as well as the art styles from the comics. As such, Darwyn Cooke, Marv Wolfman and George Perez were all announced as helping with the adaptations.

Shortly after the announcement, we sat down with Levitz to talk about the new deal, and learn a little more about the larger picture.

(excerpt)

NRAMA: In that vein, as you said at the panel, the different features will be similar in style to the art that's in the original comics?Paul Levitz: That's the goal, and it's certainly the reason to have George and Darwyn involved. With New Frontier, Darwyn's an animator by trade, so like Marv on Titans, he brings with him a very powerful knowledge of how to translate his own work. Animation's not the same thing as comics, so there are certain translations to be made, but I think you will feel the richness of Darwyn's work come through.

DC Comics held their major DC Universe-related panel of the Comic-Con weekend Saturday, and we're on hand for a full report.

(excerpt)

TEEN TITANS: THE JUDAS CONTRACT DVD(2007)

BRAVE AND THE BOLD #1(Fall 2006)

Working with Warner Bros. Home Video and WB Animation, the company will launch a new line of direct-to-video DC animated movies that are being designed with DC Comics fans in mind, Levitz said.

...The third title in the series will be an animated version of the classic story Teen Titans story �The Judas Contract�, written by Marv Wolfman. Tom DeStano (X-Men) will join Wolfman as co-writer and producer on the film.

"This is just the beginning," Levitz said. "We're sitting around and thinking of more...so send all your suggestions in."

Levitz also added that George Perez will be working on the animated Judas Contract as well, and that Bruce Timm will be overseeing all the animated films.

"We�re looking at more than the last five minutes of history," Levitz said in regards to what will differentiate this from movies such asUltimate Avengers.

...

DC displayed the George Perez cover to Brave and the Bold #1, a November debuting ongoing series by Waid and Perez. Guess who the first story arcs stars..?